Sustenance
by OuroborosSnyder
Summary: My take on what happened after the screen went black in "Endgame." More info inside. Should be a pretty short story. Enjoy. Rated T for some language. BA. Now Complete.
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Sustenance  
**Show:** LOCI  
**Pairing:** BA. This isn't too offensive though. Could be see as just a strong friendship.  
**Disclaimer:** Sadly enough, I don't own anything. This is written for pure enjoyment only and no profit to be gained!  
**Rating:** T for some language.  
**Spoilers:** "Endgame."  
**Authors Note:** So remember "Endgame" ended with Bobby sitting in the room alone? Well in that time, Alex was driving to him. That's what this story is about. Get it? There will be 5 short chapters to this story. Be patient. It should be updated pretty quickly. This is just something that came to me and I had to write it.  
**Summary:** My take on what happened after the screen went black in "Endgame."

**Chapter: 1**

Alex drives straight up to the Carmel Ridge Center as soon as she gets done talking to Ross. She wants to be there for him and she feels this strong desire to do something about it. Because, really, she just can't drive home and forget about him.

She only hopes he'll still be there. Sadly, though, she knows he will be because he has no other place to go; no other place to be. She doesn't bother to call him and let him know she's on her way. His phone has been off for quite a while now.

She pulls into the Carmel Ridge Centers' parking lot and scans the cars as she does so. With a stroke of good luck, she finds an open space right next to Bobby's black Mustang.

Alex lets out a breath she didn't know she was holding, turns the ignition off, places both hands on the top of the steering wheel, and then looks over at the front seat of Bobby's car.

_It's empty. _She thinks.

She turns towards it a little further, surprised. She thought maybe to just _get away _from everything; he might possibly just try and _sleep _in his car. The thought of him driving while he's crying and exhausted makes her shake.

_Where is he? _She briefly wonders as a long, desperate sigh finally escapes her.

* * *

**A/N: **Well, I told you the chapters will be short. I believe this is one of the shorter ones, though. Unlike most of my stories, I'm not doing a lot of _thoughts _in this one nor explaining a lot. I'm trying something different. More to come sooner rather than later. Let me know what you're thinking.

-Snyder-


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** Sadly enough, I don't own anything. This is written for pure enjoyment only and no profit to be gained!

**Chapter: 2**

She's not too keen on the idea of actually walking into _that_ place. It makes her apprehensive just thinking about it. She doesn't want to, she even shakes her head 'no', but then she remembers why she's here. _For him, _and there's a determination in her eyes that is fierce.

She slides out of the SUV and quietly shuts the door. Maybe she doesn't want to be seen, heard, noticed; she doesn't know why but she's trying to be as discrete as possible when she halts everything - her movement, her _breathing, _in her tracks.

She see's him coming out of the front entrance with a box under his left arm. His eyes are cast downward, so he doesn't see her yet. He's walking so fucking _slowly_. His shoulders are sagging and from the little facial expression she saw when he briefly looked up to glance at the stairs, she can tell how _low _he is. And even from this distance, she can tell he's crying and it saddens her. He's off, his form is off, hell, even his _walk _is off more so than usual.

She's in front of the SUV, so she gently leans back a little and waits for him. She looks down at the ground in front of her. She doesn't want to disturb him. And then she briefly wonders if this man could ever possibly be anymore disturbed than he already is.

A chill runs through her and she lets out a breath that is louder than she intends. And then she instantly freezes when she doesn't hear anything. Quietness is all that surrounds her; she can no longer hear his faint footsteps on the concrete in the night.

* * *

**A/N: **Another short chapter, I know. More to come soon. Also, I realize at the end of _Endgame, _there was a few boxes and paintings (and a hat), but lets just pretend it was one box. =)

-Snyder-


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** Sadly enough, I don't own anything. This is written for pure enjoyment only and no profit to be gained!

**Chapter: 3**

"Eam—" Bobby begins but doesn't get very far. He can't even say her fucking name.

Alex looks up and wonders when he got so close.

He's standing in front of his Mustang now and she's no longer leaning on the SUV.

They're not even ten feet away from each other and yet both already feel the invisible boundary - that goddamn line in their partnership hard at work. Not that they'd admit it, but they both hate that line so very much. Over the years, it's slowly faded.

"Bobby." She says. Alex wills herself to say his first name. She's surprised how well it comes out.

"I…um…w-what are y-you, uh, doing at this…um, h-here?" He stutters.

He's nervous, she knows. This is part of his life that he's blocked everyone out from even _viewing _from the sideline, let alone participate.

She cocks her head to the side wondering why his voice is so strained, so unsure, so _off _more than usual, and then she remembers everything. She frowns slightly because, really, how could she _forget? _

And then she sees his face clearly for the first time when she takes a few steps towards him. She sucks in a breath and it's painful.

He's practically shaking, or maybe it's her, and his eyes are tightly closed, and there are tears rolling down his face that she realizes she's never seen nor witnessed before.

A small gasp comes from her and she blinks a couple of times to clear her eyes or maybe just to give her a few minutes to prepare herself. She's not really sure, but when she looks back up at him she slowly finds herself stepping closer to him.

His eyes are still closed, and in some ways, she's grateful for it.

She reaches up and grabs the box that is still under his left arm. He lets her without any sign of resistance. She sets it on the ground and then looks back up at him. His eyes are open again and it's all she can do not to cry because of the pain they hold.

"I came here to help you." She finally says.

"H-Help?" He says back and it's in no way shape or form angry. Alex's gut hurts all of a sudden because he says it as if he doesn't understand the word.

And for the first time she truly wonders if anyone has ever helped this man before without asking for something in return.

And before Alex can stop herself, she's closing the short distance between them.

Bobby just stands there, stunned for a minute as he feels her wrap her arms around his back and squeeze.

He raises his hands up, but is very hesitant to actually place them on her back. They hover just mere inches from the small of her back when she murmurs into his chest, "Its okay, Bobby, I won't break."

* * *

**A/N: **Thanks for reading. More to come soon. I also realize that there are a lot of shippers out there that want much, much more of them with this fic, but this isn't going to be one of _those. _It's just a simple story. Thanks.

-Snyder-


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** Sadly enough, I don't own anything. This is written for pure enjoyment only and no profit to be gained!

**Chapter: 4**

As soon as the last word rolls off her tongue, his arms wrap tightly around her. She tilts her head back to look up at him, to look at his face and gauge his reaction, when he buries his head in the nape of her neck.

She whispers several reassuring words into his ear and can feel him shudder at each and every one.

A few minutes pass when she finally attempts to pull away, but not surprising his grip significantly tightens around her.

"Bobby." She murmurs as she rubs her hands up and down his back. "We can't stay here, like this, all night."

"Yes we can." He said so quickly that she thinks she imagined it.

It's in this time that she realizes that this could quite possibly be one of the only times he's been hugged, _held _in, well, his entire life.

_Oh, Bobby._

After about a minute, she hears him sigh as he reluctantly pulls away.

"I'm s-sorry." He says and dips his head down.

She reaches up with her right hand and softly places it on his cheek. He needs to know.

"There's nothing to be sorry for."

He swallows hard, absorbing her words as he does so. He believes her, too.

* * *

**A/N:** Short chapter, I know. The next chapter will be the last. Thanks for reading.

-Snyder-


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:** Sadly enough, I don't own anything. This is written for pure enjoyment only and no profit to be gained!

**Special Thanks To: **cifan, EnforcerAndAccuserFan, greeneyesbell1, Gypsy5, LadyBlueDevil86, mtisetfav1, pterryfan and rindy713.

**Chapter: 5**

Her hand slowly slides down his cheek and trails onto his broad shoulder where it inevitably falls back to her side.

"Lets get you home." She tells him and almost looses it when she sees the sadness present on his face. "And by home, I mean my place, Bobby." She explains and quickly finds herself touching him again – on his forearm this time. "Once we get home, if you like, I'll hold you forever."

And she truly doesn't know what reaction to expect from _herself_, let alone him. Her boldness surprises her, but Bobby sobbing even harder wasn't something she could have foreseen.

He reaches up with both hands to cover his face, to hide his oncoming tears from her.

It's in this time that Alex feels a tear slip past her eyelid and trail down her cheek.

"C'mon, Bobby." She whispers as she reaches up with both her hands to grab his. With little effort, she pulls his hands away from his face. Staring into his eyes, she says: "I'll take care of you. For as long as you let me, I promise I will."

The only thing he can manage to say is, "Thank you, Alex. Just…thank you."

She doesn't answer him. Instead she watches him as he picks up the box and rests it on his hip. With his right hand in her left, she leads him to the passenger seat intending on taking him home and taking care of him for as long as he needs.

_The End._

* * *

**A/N:** Well, there you have it. I know you guys wanted more, but I've always wanted to try a short story like this. To me this is totally BA…just not too smutty. But you can always use your imagination for what happens next. =) Thanks for reading.

-Snyder-


End file.
